Closing summary
Thank you for joining us on the blog – here is a wrap of the day’s headlines:
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has responded to China’s foreign ministry accusing an Australian navy helicopter of deliberately flying “within close range” of Chinese airspace in a “provocative move” in the latest military altercation between the two nations.
Half of the threatened plant and animal species in New South Wales are on course to be extinct within a century, according to a new report released by the Minns government, which finds the decline of the state’s environment has accelerated.
Debra and Martin Robinson are preparing to bring home the remains of their sons Callum, 33, and Jake, 30, to “the ocean waves of Australia” after travelling to Mexico to confirm the identities of their bodies.
Greens senator and foreign affairs spokesperson, Jordon Steele-John, says Australia should not abstain or delay voting to recognise Palestinian statehood, and “just vote yes”.
Victorian treasurer, Tim Pallas, has called the inequality between generations a “national tragedy” and requires urgent action.
The decision to ban books on same-sex parenting from local libraries has placed one western Sydney council’s funding under threat, AAP reports, as the NSW government investigates the action.
The federal court has confirmed that Elon Musk’s X will be represented by the high-profile Australian barrister Bret Walker SC in the company’s legal battle against the eSafety commissioner over the removal of 65 tweets containing video of the alleged stabbing of Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel at his Wakeley church.
The number of tourists on K’gari national park could soon be capped on the busiest days of the year, amid a wave of dingo attacks.
Save the Children Australia is today launching an appeal in the federal court in Melbourne, seeking to compel the government to repatriate a group of Australian children and their mothers from north-east Syria.
The former Queensland premier Annastacia Palaszczuk will become an international ambassador for the Smart Energy Council, the Courier Mail is reporting.
Updated
China spin on warplane flare-up rejected by Australia
Australia has rejected China’s account of an incident between a Chinese warplane and a Royal Australian Navy helicopter, with the prime minister saying there was “no question” defence personnel were in the right.
The helicopter was forced to take evasive action after a Chinese air force plane launched flares closely ahead of it over the Yellow Sea on Saturday.
Australia and the US have branded the incident as unsafe and unprofessional, with Canberra raising its objections through diplomatic channels.
China dismissed the concerns, with foreign ministry spokesperson, Lin Jian, asserting “the Australian military aircraft flew near China airspace in a threatening way”.
The flares were a warning to the Australians, he said.
Albanese said Beijing’s explanation wasn’t satisfactory. He told reporters in Perth on Wednesday:
There’s no question that the Australian Defence Force personnel were both in international waters and in international airspace.
Albanese said Australia conveyed its concerns to China’s ambassador.
Australian Strategic Policy Institute executive director, Justin Bassi, said without unconditional condemnation, this kind of behaviour would be incentivised:
While shouting rarely gets you anywhere, the idea that our response needs to be tempered so as not to upset Beijing into giving us the silent treatment or some other form of punishment unfortunately already means that their coercion against us is working.
- Australian Associated Press
Updated
